


I Know I'll Make It Home

by flaxenfreckle



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Eventual Relationships, Implied/Referenced Transphobia, M/M, Mutual Pining, Past Abuse, Slow Burn, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Urban Fantasy, Video Game Mechanics, as in the junimos and whatever weird ass magic the sdv universe has goin on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-19 05:13:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29745507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flaxenfreckle/pseuds/flaxenfreckle
Summary: Kicked out of his childhood home and with nowhere else to turn, Charlie Daniels isn’t expecting to find a home or solace in the dilapidated farm land of his barely remembered youth. But it’s either the streets, or the oppressive weight of Joja Corp. He isn’t expecting much from Pelican Town or its residents either, but with two familiar faces, he finds running from the past paves the way to a bumpy future.Miles Rodriguez, like everyone else in Pelican Town is curious about the new face that has showed up out of the blue. The new face that seems...oddly familiar? However he knows Charlie, what he doesn’t expect is the friendship that seems to bud naturally before them, despite the secrets both of them keep.Or the love that manages to bloom after.updates saturdays & sundays
Relationships: Elliot & Male Player (Stardew Valley), Minor or Background Relationship(s), Original Male Character/Original Male Character, Penny & Male Player (Stardew Valley), Sebastian/Male Player (Stardew Valley)
Kudos: 3





	1. It's The Last Thing On My Mind

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I know that TAZ fic is still sitting there.......but its been two years and my hyperfixation hasn't come back for it unfortunately u-u
> 
> But if there's one thing i can always right it's fanfic about characters who are one throw away from being self inserts.
> 
> Also i'm looking for a beta! If anyone is interested lmao

Year 1  
Spring 

  
Month 1

Charlie watched as the scenery of Stardew Valley blurred by, the cracked open bus window bringing in the salty smell of the Gem Sea and the clear air of the mountains. The sky was a deep blue that stretched on, unburdened by clouds and the sun was strong and steady, already evaporating the early morning mist as the bus chugged along the twisting mountain roads. 

Charlie clutched at the envelope in his hands again, careful to not crease the papers inside anymore than he already had. It held the letter from his Pawpa, the old key to the farmhouse, and most importantly, the deed. The deed to Peach Springs Farm was his now, the letter lovingly addressed to his Grand _son,_ Charlie, instead of the... _other_ name.

Even after all those years, and what little they saw of each other as visits became less and less frequent, Pawpa Daniels seemed to remember his  _ vehement _ dislike of skirts and the protested instances of being called the granddaughter instead of the grandson. 

Charlie could still hear his Pawpa’s voice, worse for wear on his deathbed, but still deep and steady, bidding him to not open the letter until he had felt burdened by his life...until he felt he had to find a place where he belonged.

Charlie snorted softly.  _ “Belonged.”  _ He thought.  _ “I couldn’t belong anywhere even if I tried, but hopefully Pelican Town is better than home. Better than the city.” _

In all honesty, Charlie knew that  _ anything  _ could be better than the city, just from the bus ride alone. 

Because Zuzu city couldn’t have been more different if it tried. The smog filled air, the dreary overcast clouds...the  _ people _ . There were so many people in the city, that the noise could be overwhelming - if not annoying - at first. After a couple of days, or in Charlie’s case -mere hours - after settling in, it became monotonous background static, all blending into one cacophonous droll. And it was just as easy to become an invisible nobody with no friends, as it was to ignore that ever present hum of the world turning on without him. 

Here, in the valley, there didn’t seem to be a sound wasted. A sound that went unheard no matter how small it could be. And Charlie would be living amongst it. For...for however long it took. Even if it was a short while, he’d be a somebody. At the very least, a person to remember in passing.

That, if anything, spurred him into keeping the old farmland instead of selling it.

Charlie sighed looking out of the window, where from atop the mountain road, he could see the Gem Sea peeking through the trees. 

Being trans is what got him kicked out of his house. Being trans is what got him fired from his marginally okay job at a clothing store and tucking his tail to run to the dull minuta of Joja Corp. 

“ _ But,”  _ Charlie mused, bittersweet, “ _ Being trans is what got me here. And...well at least it’s mine. It’s all I have...but at least it’s mine.” _

Charlie settled himself into the sagging pleather of the bus seat again, trying to get comfortable. 

It was almost a five hour bus ride after all, and only the first thirty had been spent going down memory lane. The next four and half could easily be spent sleeping instead of overthinking and regretting decisions that couldn’t be taken back, not now. 

Not ever.

* * *

Only two of the four and half hours were spent sleeping, much to Charlies’s chagrin. 

As the hours grew on, more and more people left the bus on the stops along the way. When Charlie was the last passenger, the bus driver, an aging woman with dirty blond curls and makeup that exasperated her age rather than hid it, had opened a pack of smokes and the sour, acrid smell permeated the bus, nauseating him so much he woke up.

Charlie had thrown a dirty look her way as he opened up the bus windows, but she either hadn’t noticed or hadn’t cared, continuing to flick open her pack and pull out a cigarette every thirty minutes after her last. 

Four and half hours and a pack of cigarettes later, the bus trundled to a stop. Charlie breathed out heavily, and stood to grab his meager belongings - a single suitcase packed tightly with clothes, and a messenger bag stuffed with the few things he could salvage from being put out. He had sold the rest of the things in his apartment, and thrown the rest away. The letter and the deed were still clutched in his hands.

Cigarette smoke still clung to the back of his throat. And Charlie’s hands shook as it all began to feel real. Too real for his liking. It all seemed more like a dream than reality on the bus...watching the scenery go by, dozing in and out of sleep - Charlie almost convinced himself that it was just a dream - that he’d been eleven again, bustled away on the bus to spend time on the farm for the summer. Splashing in the ocean, tumbling through the fields and forest, being introduced to the folks in town as the grand _ son _ . 

The weight on his shoulders and the stinging in his eyes reminded him it wasn’t a dream though. The opposite in fact. 

Charlie got his things together finally, and stepped off the bus. The driver had long since left, and the person who stood before him now, was a woman, her worn brown pants and sawdust covered vest, doing nothing to offset her shock of bright ginger hair.

Before Charlie could do more than blink, the woman had walked up to him, sticking out a hand. Closer, he could see the freckles that covered her face and neck, the deep brown of her eyes as she looked him up and down. Not being unkind, but Charlie knew he’d be getting a lot of these looks in the coming days. 

“You’re the new farmer right?” She smiled. “I’m Robin the local carpenter around these parts.” 

“Nice to meet you,” Charlie smiled back, putting the deed away and shaking Robin’s hand. “I’m Charlie, Charlie Daniels.”

Robin’s smile grew wider “Seymour Daniels’ grandson right? I never got to meet Mr. Daniels, but Mayor Lewis - he’s at your new house now- and him were good friends before he passed.”

Charlie could feel his hand tighten around the handle of his suitcase, but a knot of anxiety he hadn’t realized was there seemed to loosen at Robin’s few short words.

It wasn’t all that far-fetched. He’d been on HRT for years now, and already had top surgery. Joja may have been a soul sucking corporation that seemed to own damn near half of the Ferngill Republic, but it still paid it’s employees. Pulling those 60 hour work weeks for the overtime pay kind of seemed worth it now. If only to not correct anyone on his pronouns.

If it  _ was _ actually worth it, Charlie knew, he’d probably still  _ be _ at Joja Corp instead of here.

“Y-yeah, I know Pawpa and him used to go way back.” He laughed, trying to put a face to Lewis’s name. 

Robin laughed along with him “That’s what Lewis says! Speaking of Mayor Lewis, he wanted me to show you the way to your new house. He’s over there already tidying some things up for you, but we better not keep him waiting.” With that Robin turned and started down the path, Charlie following closely behind.

The walk was far closer to a hike than a small walk, and by the time the path evened out and became more a  _ path _ than the overgrown mess it actually was, the sun was hanging low in the sky. 

Despite how winded he was, Charlie still tried keeping up a conversation with Robin.

She had been going on about the many foragables of the forest and farm, how good the soil should still be, and even the townspeople. He stopped paying too attention however, when the topic shifted to Robin’s projects.

“I haven’t been able to do much lately,” She rambled. “Only a few things like fixing shingles or doing some repairs here and there. I’ve been thinking about fixing up the old Community Center, but there’s a lot of work to be done there and without the money from either someone donating, or the Mayor paying me, I don’t see it happening anytime soon. Which is such a shame, considering how beloved that place used to be...I remember the last project I had though, it was all the way down in Cindersnap Forest with the Ro- Oh! Here we are.”

Charlie looked up from the overgrown weeds to the farm. To his left he could see a small storage box and down a ways was the old farmhouse. Definitely abandoned looking, but that isn’t what caught his attention.

Peach Springs Farm, the place of his youth, was overgrown. Various pines and maples dotted the vast property, with logs and old rocks and weeds covering almost every inch of the land. What was once colossal trees, now laid felled and rotting, their stumps not too far away. He could see the crumbling foundations of what surely used to be coops and barns - maybe even a silo, but at the moment all he could focus on was the sheer amount of disarray that Peach Springs had fallen into in the last decade or so.

“ _ I...I should have come back here sooner.” _ Charlie thought, heat building behind his eyes. “ _ God, why didn’t I ever check in on it for a week or two?” _

Charlie jumped when Robin put a hand on his shoulder, her eyes darting about his face in concern. “Are you okay?” She asked. “I know it’s...I know how overwhelming it can be at first, but I wasn’t lying, with a little bit of dedication I’m sure this place will be farm ready in no time.” 

Charlie opened his mouth to reply, but the door to the small farmhouse opened and an old man with grey hair and a brown hat walked out, patting dust and dirt off of his shirt and pants. When he looked up and saw them standing at the steps, he smiled, the lines at the edges of his eyes and mouth smiling with him.

He walked off the front porch and similar to Robin, stuck out a hand. “Ah, you must be Seymour’s grandson, I’m Lewis, Mayor Lewis. It’s a pleasure to meet you, son.”

Charlie shook Lewis’s hand, still ignoring the way his eyes stung, and hoping the Mayor just thought he had a mild case of hay fever. “Nice to meet you Mayor Lewis, I don’t know if you remember me all that well, but I’m Charlie, the Grandson.” 

Lewis laughed again. “He was always fond of that nickname for you, Charlie, but enough about that - here’s your new home.” 

Lewis turned back to the farmhouse and gestured to it. “It’s got all the simple amenities to it - a little kitchenette and an indoor toilet - but it’s a little bit more on the rustic side if you ask me. Shower’s out back behind the house, - I hope you like cold showers.”

“Of course,” Robin cut in. “If you’re looking for some upgrades, I have bundles for a pretty good price…” 

“Don’t go harassing the new farmer, Robin, he just got here.”

“I’m not harassing him, just letting him know if there’s ever a time he wants anything - he’s more than welcome to discuss it with me.”

Charlie let Robin and Lewis argue while he looked over the farm again. It had been years since he’d been here, but he could almost remember everything. The chicken coop with his favorite brown chickens and the one rabbit Pawpa kept around, towering fields of corn he had tended to, hours before Charlie even considered getting up. Even standing and following his grandfather for hours hauling a basket for blueberries and grapes.

All of it was so close. Yet it felt even further than his last day in Zuzu City. 

Charlie turned back to the conversation going on around him, just as Lewis and Robin finished their argument and the conversation turned back to him.

“Anyway,” Lewis coughed. “Charlie I’m sure you’re tired, so we’ll leave you to it. Try introducing yourself to everyone in town tomorrow though, everyone’s curious about you.”

Charlie blinked. “Me? Is it that big of a deal?” 

Robin and Lewis shrugged. “We don’t get many people here.” Robin said.

Lewis rubbed the back of his head. “In fact, apart from Elliot, the last fresh faces we got here was the Rodriguez brothers, who live down in Cindersnap Forest and having new people in just as many years - well the last time that happened was well over 20 years ago.”

Whatever Charlie was about to say next died in his throat. That had to be a coincidence. It had been  _ years _ . Years since he’d even...Years since Charlie was back there, but…

What  _ was _ the last he had heard of Miles or Jax? Their parents and little siblings still had the same house, in the same neighborhood, but Miles had gone and gotten an apartment in the city for college, Jax following after he graduated highschool afterwards…

Right?

However long they’d been gone though, Charlie hadn’t been back at  _ his _ house in longer.

“Uh, R-rodriguez brothers?” He stuttered out, trying not to wince when he stuttered, but neither Lewis nor Robin seemed to notice.

“Yeah, Miles and Jax Rodriguez, they showed up, out of nowhere around...What’s it been now Robin? Two, three years now?” 

Robin nodded. “It’ll be four this Summer.” She tilted her head. “It was quite a situation when they got here, but they’re both doing good for themselves now, and I’ve long since fixed up that little house of theirs down in the forest.”

“Come on now Robin, let’s not get caught up again, I’m sure Charlie’s had a long day.” Lewis said and this time Charlie couldn’t agree more. 

* * *

Robin and Lewis waved him off and started down the path back to town, leaving Charlie alone with Peach Springs Farm. Evening had descended by then and in the fading light of the day, he examined the old farmhouse. 

True to Lewis’s word, there was a single large room, the bed shoved to the side, and a kitchenette squared off in the far corner. The only other room housed a toilet, a sink and nothing else, and Charlie was sure he’d be thinking of all the repairs and upgrades he could do, if it weren’t for the fact he knew Miles Rodriguez lived here in Pelican Town.

“ _ Maybe I shouldn’t be worried about Miles… _ ” He thought.  _ “Jax was...I was still tutoring him when it all happened. He  _ knew _ more than anyone else in our highschool. _ ”

Charlie may have been a nobody when Miles was still in their school, but Jax, would know. He  _ already _ knew if the way he acted around Charlie was any indication.

Asking Charlie his pronouns and swearing on his great-great grandmother’s grave to not tell was all the indication he needed, even if Jax only knew him at the time by his  _ other _ name.

But that was still years ago. Even if Jax Rodriguez was okay with it then there was no guarantee he’d still be respectful now. Or not tell the whole town as soon as he realized who Charlie was. 

But there wasn’t much he could do now, other than try to avoid them like they were the shadow people.

For now, Charlie was exhausted. The bus ride was long, the hike up here had his legs feeling like jelly, and the emotional whiplash of seeing his Pawpa’s farm and finding out both Miles  _ and _ Jax Rodriguez lived in Pelican Town had him falling into a deep sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

He didn’t dream that night.

  
  



	2. We Got The Radio On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Instead of meeting his neighbors, Charlie's neighbors decide to meet him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter!
> 
> looking for a beta btw if anyone is interested lmao

Mayor Lewis had suggested Charlie introduce himself to the townspeople his first day and start to become a friendly face around Pelican Town.

Instead, Charlie had taken to the overgrowth of Peach Springs with gusto, chopping down trees and destroying rocks until the land in front of his house was free of any debris. The tools Lewis had left him had been kept in good condition all these years, and now Charlie had the blisters to show for all of his hard work. Those  _ and _ the small sprouts of cauliflower, potatoes, and parsnips.

He’d barely left the farm for the entire week, focusing on getting the land cleared and ready for any other plantings that needed to be done. 

Once or twice he’d gone up the path behind the farm to Robin’s house to talk about those upgrades she had mentioned and had met her family. The second day in Pelican Town he’d made the journey into the town proper to buy seeds and supplies, but…

But Charlie had fled back to the farm when he’d seen a flash of dark skin and green eyes. 

“At least Pierre knows me now,” He muttered to himself. “And Marnie too - I did see her.”

He’d actually met a good deal of Pelican Town that day, Pierre and his family, not to mention Marnie, Jodie, and Emily, bustling in with yoga mats and exercise balls. Charlie had been avoiding Cindersnap Forest to the south, but had still managed to meet Leah, and had politely introduced himself to Penny when he had seen her sitting off by herself, immersed in a book.

“I mean, this is just to get some money right?” Charlie continued to talk to himself, gathering lumber to pile next to his house. “I...I don’t need to become friends with everyone. I mean a year and I’ll be gone...maybe? God I don’t know.”

Charlie continued to haul rocks and lumber to the side of the farmhouse. On Robin’s recommendation - hoping to cut down the price of upgrades with the sheer amount of lumber and stone he could collect. 

And plenty to collect there was. In between the weeds and grass that still grew rampant over Peach Springs, rocks were plentiful from the empty farm buildings that over time had rotted away, leaving the space for maples, oaks, and pines to sow their seeds and sprout up in their place. After almost ten years, the trees had grown tall and strong.

And harder to chop through.

The crisp spring breeze didn’t seem all that refreshing now as Charlie struggled to get through tree after tree. The old axe had been kept in good condition, but all the iron tools were weak - and in the axe’s case - dull. 

“There’s. Gotta. Be a. Way to. Get a. Sharper. Axe.” He said with each swing of his axe. “Isn’t there a blacksmith in town? Guess I would know if I bothered going into town for more than ten minutes.” 

Charlie paused from the oak he had barely made a dent in and checked his watch.

3:15. Break time. And only two trees down to show for being up since 6 this morning.

He trudged back into his house after showering and all but collapsed onto one of old chairs that had come with the house. He knew better than to stay sitting for too long though. Only after about five minutes did he drag himself up and over to the kitchenette, and opened the small fridge. 

Leftovers from the Saloon greeted him, like they had everyday this week. Whenever Charlie dozed off and woke up in the middle of the night, the saloon at least would still be open with hot food still available. Gus was a friendly guy, Charlie had decided and Emily just seemed excited to see the new face every now and then.

The fact they only saw him in the dead of night and didn’t ask questions put them in more than good standing with him. The fact the old woman and the other man who always seemed to be at the saloon  _ also _ minded their business was enough to keep him coming back.

Charlie warmed up his leftovers and turned on the tv, listening to the drone of the weatherman on repeat as he ate. His personally mandated breaks seemed to stretch on forever and were finished in no time at all. 

Even if he could technically do whatever he wanted, Charlie knew that if he stopped for more than a few minutes at a time, all the anxiety he’d been ignoring for the last week would come up to strangle him like a vice. He couldn’t take the chance of them knowing who he was. Maybe  _ Jax _ , but Miles…

Charlie stood, leaving his plate on the table and going back outside. His blisters stung and he could feel a sunburn against his sun darkened skin, but there was work to be done. There was  _ always _ work to be done.

\---

There was a noise outside the farmhouse. Even after all that time in the city, the quiet of Pelican Town had now made him hyper aware of each branch falling in the night, each howl of the wind in the early morning, and each scuff of footsteps that was currently shuffling just on the other side of the wall near his bed. 

It wasn’t the footsteps that had woken him though. It was the thump and a muffled curse that had his eyes shooting open at 5 in the morning. 

_ “A burglar? No that doesn’t make any sense, there isn’t anything to steal! Oh god, is it shadow people? Do they always come out here!?” _ Charlie’s thoughts began to race as the shuffling continued.  _ “I don’t even have a sword! But...Shit I can’t have them thinking they can stay here, right?” _

Charlie got out of bed trying to be careful. The squeaky springs and creaky floorboards were louder than he remembered, but his axe was in grabbing distance and he had long since oiled the annoying old hinges of his front door.

The noises were still there, but they didn’t seem to be going anywhere. Charlie, slipped on his boots, and peaked outside.

Sure enough there were two figures near the mailbox, a taller one and one hunched over. The sun hadn’t risen yet, and Charlie was only barely able to make out that the taller one at the very least was vaguely humanoid. 

“ _ Fuck, maybe if I hurt one, the other will back off...shit why are there even monsters here in the first place?” _ Charlie thought, and gripped his axe tighter before stepping onto the porch. 

He hadn’t even said anything to get their attention, when the smaller one’s head whipped to the side, and quicker than Charlie could even fumble for the axe he was being knocked to the ground.

“ _ So this is how I die.”  _ He thought. “ _ Mauled to death by a shadow person-!” _

What greeted him instead of claws and fangs, was a wet nose, and an even wetter, grosser tongue. Charlie opened his eyes, and staring back at him was a dog - tanned fur with floppy brown ears. 

There was laughing from near the mailbox still, and then a voice. 

“Oh sorry, sorry. I found this dog around and thought she was yours.” He said in between laughs. “Here let me get her off you.”

Charlie could hear the man come closer and half-heartedly he tried to push the dog away himself, but the adrenaline rush was wearing off, just as quickly as it came on, and the most he could manage were pats that only seemed to encourage her. 

He couldn’t think too much about her though. That voice...he’d heard that voice before. 

Just as he placed it, the stranger lit a torch and the entire area was bathed in an orange glow. The dog and his face included.

“ _ Charlie?  _ Charlie Mccomber is that you?” The voice said, and the weight on Charlie’s chest lifted as the dog was picked up and away. A hand hauled him into a sitting position and for the first time in years, Charlie, came face to face with one of the only people he didn’t think he’d seen again.

“ _ Jax _ ? What the _ hell _ ?”

Jax grinned widely and threw an arm around Charlie. “Holy shit! It is you! Charlie McComber, I thought I’d never see you again!”

Charlie awkwardly patted Jax’s back, reeling still from the fact he wasn’t dead and that someone was calling him McComber.

“I, uh, yeah. It’s - I mean, I…” Charlie stuttered and pulled back from Jax’s grip. “W-what are you doing here Jax? I knew you were in the valley but I thought a shadow person was about to break down my door!”

Jax only laughed loudly, shaking Charlie’s shoulders. “Charlie everyone knows monsters only live in the mines - they don’t come up to the surface very often. As for what  _ I’m  _ doing here, well, you have mail.”

Jax stood, dragging Charlie up with him and dug through the bag slung over his shoulders. With a flourish he pulled out several letters that were all addressed to him.

“Here’s your mail  _ Mr. _ McComber.” Jax chuckled and nudged him. 

Charlie blushed. “I-uh, yeah. Uh, it’s,  _ Mr. _ Daniels...Now.”

Jax smiled again. “It’s good to see you so happy Charlie. Who’d a thought my old tutor would become my new neighbor?” He laughed again and Charlie breathed out a laugh as well. “I’ve been seeing your mail pretty often but I wasn’t sure until I saw you just now. ”

He hadn’t forgotten. Not exactly. The hours and days Charlie had spent with Jax, tutoring him in math and history were just pushed to the back burner of his mind. It didn’t help that Jax, even three years younger than him, had  _ always _ seemed to see through his hopeless attempts of hiding how much he crushed on his older brother. 

(Jax had known he was trans before anyone else did.)

(It took him years to figure out that it wasn’t  _ him _ being obvious. Jax had just... _ known _ him that well. Was  _ that _ aware of other people.)

“Yeah, and I’m sure my last name didn’t help that - It’s, it isn’t legally McComber anymore either...Uh hasn’t been in a while.”

Jax clasped his shoulder. “That’s great Charlie. And don’t worry about me telling anyone - if there’s one thing I know how to keep, it’s a secret.”

Before Charlie could ask about that, Jax was already stepping down off the porch and jogging back down the path, yelling as he went.

“I gotta go, but I’ll come by later today - oh and I’ll bring Miles with me - and keep the dog!” He yelled. “I think she likes you!”

Charlie stuttered trying to get him to come back, and made to run after Jax, but the dog, still underfoot, tripped him. By the time he could scramble back up again, Jax was long gone, and the sun was starting to peak over the horizon.

“Dammit…”

\---

True to Jax’s word, around 2 in the afternoon, he came over from the town, a pair of worn gloves sticking out of his pocket and a steel axe in his hands. By that time, Charlie had already weeded, watered, and fertilized his crops, and had settled down with the dog, trying to make a half decent scarecrow.

Miles, he noticed, was absent.

In the light of the day he could see Jax more clearly now. He was much taller than the last time Charlie had seen him and his dark, wavy hair was gathered at the nape of his neck. He sported a deep tan and a dark blue bandana was wrapped around his neck and unlike Charlie, dressed in layers, Jax sported a tank top, jeans, boots and a single worn sailor’s bracelet. Jax waved widely with the hand not holding the axe, and walked over, nodding at the dog. 

“She seems to really like you.” He said and Charlie had to agree.

Sadie - what he named her - had followed Charlie nonstop since the morning, even hopping into the bed with him, in an attempt to catch a few more minutes of sleep. She seemed content to be on her own throughout the day, but when Charlie approached her tail would start to wag and she’d insist on following him wherever he went. He had already gone down to Marnie’s to buy a collar and leash - managing to inadvertently meet one of his midnight saloon buddies and Jas, Marnie’s niece. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to, but Sadie had also gotten a bath under the spray of the shower, and lacking dog shampoo, Charlie had used his own body wash, grateful that even if she now smelled like strawberries, it was better than dirt and grass.

“I think I’m naming her Sadie.” He said and patted her head.

“That’s a good name. A good thing she took such a liking to you.”

“Yeah, especially, since  _ someone _ just left her on my front porch.”

Jax shrugged off the jab and once again hauled Charlie to his feet. “Yeah, yeah whatever, c’mon farm boy, get your axe, I’m showing you the proper way to chop down a tree today.”

“Hey,  _ I  _ know how to cut down a tree.”

Jax didn’t bother to respond, instead dragging Charlie over to where there was still a veritable forest on Peach Springs.

For the next several hours, Jax and him cut down several more trees, Jax’s sharpened steel axe cutting through both trunks and stumps faster than Charlie’s simple and dull iron one could. They took a few breaks here and there, and much to Charlie’s surprise, Jax really  _ did _ , have better ways of showing him how to cut down a tree. Sadie dutifully lounged on the porch, away from possible splinters and possible injury.

But something had been bothering Charlie for awhile now. Ever since he found out that Miles and Jax were here, in Pelican Town. In  _ Stardew Valley _ and not back in the city or the borough they had all grown up in.

Charlie leaned on his axe, sopping up sweat with his shirt. It wasn’t the easiest topic to broach, but Charlie knew that topics like these rarely were.

“Hey Jax.” He started and Jax paused from his stump. “How did you guys...How did you guys end up here? In Pelican Town?”

Jax fiddled with his sailor’s bracelet, squinting out over the farm. 

“I...I’m not sure if I can tell you the entire story. A lot of it had to do with Miles needing a change, and...I mean he doesn’t really like people knowing all that much.”

“I didn’t mean to pry.”

Jax waved him off. “No, no you didn’t pry - I can actually tell you most of it. It...It was actually about four years ago now, and Miles and I had everything we owned up in his car and came down to the valley. We had... _ I _ had saved up enough to buy the deed to some old property out in the forest, but we didn’t know how bad that place actually was.” Jax hefted his axe and began chopping into the stump again. His eyebrows were pinched together, but Charlie couldn’t tell if it was due to the concentration needed to split the stump or whatever he was remembering.

“It was worse than we expected. But it was all we had. When the town found out though, oh man, that was an uproar.” Jax adjusted his gloves and started in again. “We had all sorts of people coming in and helping us - Linus was a big help actually and Mayor Lewis let us crash in the abandoned farmhouse for a little bit - Robin even offered us a great deal on fixing up that old house, but the catch was that we still needed to get the money together.”

“Before we know it - we’re doing all sorts of odd jobs,” Jax grunted. “Picking up shifts at Joja mart here and there, helping Willy out on his boat, even going down into the mines now and then to see what we can dig up between trying not to get dissolved by slimes. There was a week where Emily was down with the flu and we covered her shifts - things like that.”

Jax swung the axe again and this time the stump split in several pieces. Charlie began to collect the salvageable pieces of hardwood, and Jax continued.

“And we do this - chopping down trees and collecting lumber for Robin - hauling it up and down the mountain since neither of us have any other way of getting it to her, but by the time Autumn comes around, we have a house. It’s nothing too fancy, but at least we have a fireplace to keep us warm. And well, Lewis mentions one day how he’s getting too old to deliver mail, and for me the rest is history.”

Jax looked up into the sky. Flower petals were blowing through the wind, and they drifted down onto the farm. They covered Peach Springs and made the old farm land look like something out of a film for just a moment. Charlie could almost pretend he was in one. For just a second before Jax spoke again.

“Yeah.” He mumbled, almost too softly for Charlie to hear. “It’s history now.”

\---

  
  


Charlie had almost forgotten what he was so anxious about that he had confined himself to his farm for a week and a half, until Sadie started barking, alerting them of someone walking onto the farm. 

Charlie had been expecting Lewis or even Robin or Demetrius coming down from the mountain. Even Jodi made the trip once.

His breath caught in his throat, when he saw who it really was.

A little older, and looking more exhausted than he remembered, but with the same dark skin and green eyes and beauty mark near his eye.

Miles. 

Miles Rodriguez. Jax’s older brother by five years, and older than Charlie himself by only one. 

He had a t-shirt on with a brown leather jacket thrown over it, dark ripped jeans and a bandana wrapped around the elbow of his left arm and he carried a simple brown basket with him. His hair was short and messy, like he had rolled out of bed not so long ago and glinted brown in the sunlight. 

His eyes though. Charlie kept looking at his eyes. Pale green like fresh spring leaves and bright despite the dark circles under them, Miles for all the world, looked exactly like Charlie remembered him, and yet nothing like the teenager he used to know. 

“ _ It’s probably the same for me…” _ He thought, taking him in.

Miles looked unsure as he approached and with a start, Charlie realized that not only had he been  _ caught _ staring, but Sadie was still barking, moving in front of Charlie, the longer that he didn’t put her at ease.

“Uh, S-Sadie!” Charlie kept his eyes on his dog, instead of either Jax or Miles, hoping that they’d think the sudden heat building in his cheeks were from the sun and exertion. “Down girl, he’s a - a friend.”

Jax huffed out a laugh and Charlie remembered, with growing mortification, that when they were younger, the same thing had happened on at least a monthly basis. 

He remembered, being a  _ lot _ more subtle about it though.

Sadie eventually stopped her barking and Jax beckoned his brother over. 

“Miles c’mere! Here’s the new farmer everyone’s been talking about.” He said.

He stopped in front of them and Charlie could feel his blush starting to creep down his neck. He kept his eyes down towards Sadie, fiddling with her short fur and trying not to be embarrassed by how dirty he was.

Miles for his part looked just as awkward, fiddling with his jacket zipper. “Uh, nice to uh, nice to meet you.” He mumbled and grimaced.

Charlie coughed. “Uh, you too...Um, Miles right?” As if he didn’t know. “I, uh, I’m Charlie, Charlie Daniels.”

They stood there for several minutes, not talking to each other and avoiding each other’s eyes. Everytime Charlie opened his mouth to say something, Miles winced and Charlie shut his mouth, not saying anything at all. Jax watched the two of them, a grin growing on his face. “Well, this isn’t going to get  _ any _ less awkward, so let’s eat - I’m starving.”

“Jax!” Charlie hissed, but like earlier this morning, he didn’t pay any attention to him, instead he snatched the basket out of his brother’s stunned hands and headed over to the farmhouse, Sadie chasing after him.

“Oh God,” Charlie could hear Miles mutter. “I’m so sorry about him.”

“N-no, it’s okay, he was, uh mostly right. I don’t - I’m not the best conversationalist.” 

“I - no it was my fault - it’s fine. He’s mostly my responsibility.”

Jax cut off the next thing Charlie was about to say with a yell from the farmhouse. “Hey! Me and the dog are gonna eat everything!”

“Wait, fuck,” Charlie muttered and turned his house and started to walk over. “Hey! You better wash your hands dammit!”

He could hear Miles following after him and secretly was glad of not only the distraction, but for Jax being there to break whatever awkwardness that Charlie seemed to just exude by himself. Unfortunately, now that he had  _ met _ Miles and Jax, there was no reason to avoid them, or the town any longer. Jax, Charlie knew, couldn’t be avoided. Miles though - all he wanted was to never see him again. 

Miles didn’t know who he was. Which...was to be expected. He left before  _ everything _ went down with highschool, and his parents. Not to mention the years he spent in Zuzu City, working for Joja and transitioning.

That was more than enough to spur Charlie into avoiding Miles the best that he could.

And if their meeting today was any indication, Miles was more than happy to avoid Charlie just the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! If yall see a mistake pls let me know - i try to do 3 read throughs, but things still seem to slip between the cracks orz


	3. Looking Back At Sunsets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The community center starts to beg more questions than answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey! so i think i got a solid schedule for this thing and it might?? be longer than 20 chapters even tho i got my outline all hashed out. we'll see.

Now that Charlie had actually met Miles and Jax, he no longer had an excuse to not go into town for longer periods of time. He’d actually met the rest of Pelican Town, and weirdly enough, Mayor Lewis had given him the old key to the community center - a broken down building worse than his own farm.

What was even more weird was the fact there was a _Joja Mart_ in town.

“There’s a _what_ here?!” Charlie said and Lewis had given him a long look.

“You...You haven’t seen the Joja mart around here? Or Morris? Or, uh, Pierre complaining about Morris?”

Charlie scratched at the back of his head, trying to think. He was fairly certain he’d met everyone in Pelican Town, so the name Morris didn’t ring a bell, and most times Charlie just...tuned out whatever Pierre said as he rang up his items.

“...No. Not really.”

“Well, that doesn’t matter much.” Lewis sighed. “Morris has been pestering me to sell the old place, but I guess I’m just too sentimental to let it go.” Lewis pulled an old key out of his pocket and unlocked the door, beckoning Charlie inside. 

“This used to be the pride and joy of Pelican Town.” He said. “And well, now you can see what’s come of it.”

Charlie knew what Mayor Lewis meant. The old community center had been abandoned through and through. Boards had been destroyed showing the soft dirt underneath and now small sprouts were pushing through other cracks in the floor as well. The roof had fallen in some places and now sunlight filtered through, sticking the dark building in a twilight-esque state.

What caught Charlie’s eye though was the hut. 

Taller than he was and made of clay and grass, the hut stood off to the side of the room, to Charlie, it seemed to take up more room than it should have, yet was tucked away, like if he hadn’t been paying attention, his eyes could have glanced over it seamlessly. The longer Charlie looked at it, the more... _alive_ it seemed to be. Like he could almost see the faint outline of- 

“ _Charlie!_ ” Lewis shouted and Charlie jumped, heartbeat spiking. 

“Uh, y-yeah?”

Lewis gave him another strange look. He narrowed his eyes. Flicked them between the hut and back to him. 

“You were walking toward that little house, son.” He finally said.

“What? No I…” Charlie trailed off, looking at the hut again. He was almost in reaching distance from it now. He’d just been by Lewis’s side though. They had _just_ walked through the half-rotted doors.

Charlie shuffled a few feet back, putting distance between himself and the hut.

“I, uh, I don’t really know what came over me. Must be working too hard on the farm.” He said, trying to laugh it off. Lewis’s expression just grew more concerned and Charlie winced. “...I thought I saw something.” He finished lamely.

Lewis frowned, but seemed to accept that answer. Looking around he scuffed a foot on the old floor watching the dust and dirt float up as he did. 

“An old place like this...I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a rat problem.” He said. “There’s gotta be something living in here now as abandoned as it is.”

“I...Yeah. Um, Robin said you’d wanted to get it repaired though?”

Lewis sighed deeply. “Yeah, I would, but being Mayor comes with a lot of tough decisions. Even with Joja Mart bringing in more money to the town, it’d be too expensive to really hire anyone to fix it up.” He took off his hat and rubbed at his hair. “But listen, if you want to take care of the rat problem, you can.”

Charlie blinked. He didn’t _actually_ say there were rats. “Wait, what? I didn’t - I don’t-”

“No, no. I’m not saying you have to, but I can’t imagine you’d like them in town with your crops growing just down the hill.” Lewis stepped closer to Charlie and pressed the old key into his hands. “Here hang onto that, just remember to keep the place locked up.”

Before Charlie could get another word in, Lewis had clasped him on the shoulder, and walked out of the Center, shutting the door behind him.

“...Okay. Okay what the hell? I didn’t even…” Charlie muttered to himself. “When did I say rats? Did I...No I did not.”

Charlie looked around the abandoned building again. The only thing that seemed to be in any working order was the fireplace and mantle, the brick and mortar untouched by time. 

The rest of the place though. 

Charlie could see an old fish tank, the shattered glass littering the floor where mushrooms grew up - surely from whatever water had leaked out. Down to the hall to his left, a portion of the roof had completely caved in and above in the rafters were the remnants of bird nests. He didn’t bother going through the rest of the building, knowing that birds were the least of his worries in a town so far removed as Pelican Town.

That weird hut though…

Charlie looked at it again. By the leaves on top, it couldn’t’ve been more than a couple of days old, and even the dirt around it looked fresh and newly disturbed. Not by any animal or human or monster. Just like the building had been made just yesterday and the soil hadn’t settled yet. However, Charlie knew that it must have been there for years, decades even, despite the Community Center only being “freshly” discarded.

He was looking through the door to the hut again, when from the darkness, a round blob stepped forward and blinked up at him.

(Had anyone been there with him, Charlie would have swore to his dying day, that he didn’t shriek like he was still pre-t. Since there was no one there at all, Charlie knew he’d never tell anyone about this day.

If he lived to see the next.)

Charlie reeled backwards, a foot catching on the loose floorboards. He caught himself roughly on his elbows, but still frantically tried to get away, especially as the creature stepped more fully outside of the hut and started to walk towards him.

“ _Don’t!”_ Charled yelled, not sure if it would even work, but to his surprise, the blob stopped, just a few feet away from him.

Charlie shuffled as far back as could on his back, not wanting to risk taking his eyes off of it. The creature looked at him. He looked at it back. It wasn’t a monster - _definitely_ not a slime - or a rat. And it...it wasn’t attacking him. It was round with a bright green body - with thin arms and legs it bounced on. It didn’t move, but blinked again at him, almost expectantly.

Charlie stood, ignoring his skinned elbows and bruised back, and watched as the small thing scittered a few steps to the left, but still out of his reach. Then it stopped, and looked back at him. 

It took Charlie several minutes of watching it to realize that it wanted him to follow. 

“Am I hallucinating? Is this a dream?” The sting of his scraped elbows told him otherwise, but Charlie still couldn’t believe it. 

“Shit...I need to get a sword.” He mumbled to himself before stepping toward the creature, who again, ran a few feet ahead before stopping to wait for him.

The little creature lead him to the left side of the Community Center, where the roof had stayed more intact. If it were the middle of the night, Charlie wasn’t sure if he’d be able to see, but in the afternoon, he could make out the little creature ducking it’s way into a room, and Charlie followed.

The room was completely dark. Except there in the middle, something was glowing bright and shining, illuminating the entire room. 

The small creature was nowhere to be found.

Charlie knelt on the old floor, looking at whatever glowed so brightly in the dark of the Community Center.

What greeted him was a scroll. Soft like woven spider silk, but still as strong as wood. The text on it was indecipherable. It wasn’t any language Charlie had seen. Not English, not the native scrawl of the Gotoro Empire, nothing like Dwarvish or the even tilt of those who lived further in the Calico Desert.

The more he tried to decipher it, the more his head hurt, and too late did Charlie realize that the glow of scroll was getting brighter and brighter, until his vision was filled with it - like staring at the sun.

His vision was filled with it. He couldn’t see anything else.

* * *

“...lie…?”

Charlie came to, disoriented. He was standing by the river, watching as it flowed down from the mountain, the glare of the reflected sunlight, hurting his head and eyes. 

_“Wasn’t I...Wasn’t I just in the Community Center? What...What was that?”_ He thought and rubbed at his temples. Images he couldn’t remember were _just_ unreachable. He remembered the Community Center and Lewis, but after that the details were fuzzy and indistinct. There was the hut and...the rats? But that didn’t explain the shining he could almost _still_ feel. Like the rays of the summer sun awash from the forest’s shade. The cool spray of the ocean on sand burnt soles. 

Charlie stared at the river, the glare reminding him just barely of what had happened minutes ago. He was missing something. The darkened Community Center, the small hut. The-

The...The-

The crea-

“Hey man, are you okay?” 

Charlie jumped, startled out of his thoughts. The voice next to him might as well have been a firecracker with how loud it was, despite the rush of the river, but still, Charlie stumbled. Too late he realized just how close to the edge he actually was and instead of land, his foot caught on air. 

Charlie windmilled, trying to regain his balance, but he could feel himself falling and his heart leapt in his throat. He knew how to swim, but the river currents coming out of the mountain were swift and ridden with rocks that didn’t smooth out until further downstream. 

Just as he braced himself for the water, a hand closed around his wrist and he was yanked forward, his head colliding with his saviour’s chest.

“Shit, are you okay?” Rather than hear the question, Charlie could feel it, the deep rumble of the words something he could feel down to his bones.

Charlie looked up. 

His eyes met dark ones, eyes set into a pale face with a single eyebrow raised in a question.

Charlie flushed and took several steps away from Sebastian, minding the river this time. He seemed wholly unperturbed by the entire encounter and Charlie wondered how someone could be so nonchalant about rescuing someone from the river. 

“Uh, um, S-Sebastian right?” Charlie stammered and tried to will his mortification away.

Sebastian still stared at him. “Uh yeah. Dude are you okay? You’ve been staring at the river for a half hour now.”

Charlie could feel the heat in his face begin to creep down his neck. 

“Uh, well,” He reached up to rub at his neck and then hissed in pain. Charlie brought up his elbow, and balked at the scrapes and splinters that littered both of them. As he was inspecting them, Sebastian stepped closer, gingerly moving Charlie’s hands out of the way, both of his brows disappearing behind his inky black hair. 

He was close. Close enough that Charlie could smell the tobacco and sawdust that lingered on his clothes and for him to count his eyelashes. His hands were soft as they held up one of Charlie’s elbows, but cold against his burning skin.

“Dude, what even happened to you?” Charlie opened his mouth, but Sebastian barrelled on. Which. What was he supposed to say? _He_ had barely known what happened to him. 

“You’re gonna have to see Harvey, man.”

Charlie almost jerked out of Sebastian’s grip.

“What? No, no, I think -I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

Sebastian snorted. “No you won’t.” He said and dropped his elbow, taking his wrist instead. “I grew up with a carpenter - you’ve seen one infected pus-filled, wound, caused by a splinter, you’ve seen them all.” 

Charlie was dragged down the river bank and into town, trying in vain to protest against seeing Harvey.

(“It won’t be that bad.”

“...yeah. It kinda will if you don’t do it right.”

“I don’t have any money!”

“Harvey won’t charge for something like this - trust me.”

“I-I don’t know where his clinic is!”

“...”

“...Yeah, I know that one was kinda lame…”)

The truth was Charlie’s stomach was churning with anxiety now, the closer they stepped to the doctor’s clinic. There was a conversation he was hoping to put off for as long as possible. The nurse there - Maru, already knew, but Harvey was a different story. Even though - he should have already gotten all of his medical records, reviewed them - _knew._

Charlie couldn’t talk Sebastian out of it, and in no time they were at Harvey’s clinic. Unlike the impersonal doctor offices Charlie had visited in the past, Harvey’s clinic was small and lived in - _loved._ Years of being in the same small town holding its own effect above the sterility.

“Maru,” Sebastian began without preamble. “The new guy got hurt and needs the doc to patch him up.”

Maru looked up from the papers she was organizing, eyes glancing over Sebastian before landing on Charlie.

She smiled at him and Charlie made the conscious effort to unclench his jaw. There wasn’t anything to be...nervous about. Nothing at all. Maru was going to be seeing him on a regular basis. Charlie had already come in once to pick up prescriptions. She hadn’t mentioned it. There was no reason to be tense.

“Mr. Daniels, if it’s okay, I can actually take care of your injuries for you - Doctor Harvey is actually with a patient right now.” 

“It’s - It’s just Charlie. Mr. Daniels was my - that was my grandfather.” He grit out. “And y-yeah, that’s fine. It’s - you’re - yes.”

Sebastian scoffed and Charlie glanced at him from the corner of his eye. 

He had long since let go of his wrist and in the harsh fluorescences of the building, he looked even more pale, black hair only exasperating it. His lips were pulled into a frown that threatened to grow into a sneer and Charlie could see his eyes flicker from Maru to him and back again, before Sebastian rolled his eyes, and walked out of the door.

“Bye.” He muttered, and stalked out of sight.

“Uh, bye?” Charlie said into the air. He looked at Maru. “What - Did I do something?”

Maru held the door to the back open and looked at the door, sighing. “I..I don’t think you did. But it’s - well - nevermind.” She gave him a strained smile, lifting the first aid box higher. “We have to take care of you first Mr. -uh, Charlie.”

Charlie couldn’t do anything but follow Maru, casting one backwards glance at the door, like Sebastian would appear again, explaining his odd behavior.

He didn’t however, and Charlie couldn’t find it in himself to be surprised. 

* * *

Charlie walked through Cindersnap forest dazed. It was only the day after he had met Mayor Lewis at the Community Center and Sebastian had forced him to the clinic to get his elbows looked at.

The band aids had long been changed, but he could still feel both the uncomfortable pull of his skin under them and the awkwardness of Sebastian leaving so abruptly.

He had gone home right after that, too exhausted to do little more than change his clothes and feed Sadie again. Charlie slept, however it was far from refreshing.

His dreams were plagued with the small creature he had seen come out the hut. He couldn’t understand them still and trying to communicate made him restless and uneasy even in his dream. They seemed so _distressed_ and the language barrier had added insult to injury.

When Charlie had awoken that morning, his dreams were lost to him, but the uneasiness hadn’t left him Still, he stuck to his mandated schedule - feed Sadie, weed and water the crops, chop down a tree or two and then take a break for lunch and to check the mail. By the time his lunch break came around, Charlie had almost forgotten his weariness from the night before. 

But then there was the letter.

The Wizard - Rasmodius - had sent him a letter. On a different type of stationary and Charlie had nearly gutted himself on his pickaxe when it had dissolved into sparks in his very hands. 

But the message was clear enough - come to the tower, and he’d get the answers about the Community Center. 

And answers there were. 

Rasmodius had been curt and standoffish. Business minded and impersonal in a way that reminded him far too much of executives at Joja Corp. However, the fact Rasmodius seemed to actually _want_ Charlie to recover that hour he had spent in the Community Center, if not just for the junimos, spoke leagues more to Charlie than any Joja Corp “loyalty” program ever did or ever could do. Even if the fact _Rasmodius_ had dreamt about him left him feeling creeped out.

“What the fuck have I gotten myself into?” Charlie groaned into his hands as he walked. “ _Junimos_ ? The hell’s a junimo? And God what is wrong with me? Drinking weird soups from weird old men in weird old towers? I was - I _hoped_ I was raised better than that.”

Charlie grabbed wild horseradishes and dandelions as he walked and talked to himself, putting them into his messenger bag as he went. More often than not, he wondered if eating one would get rid of the taste in his mouth.

The... _soup_ Rasmodius had him drink was foul in every way possible. It tasted like the smell of rain soaked soil. The clear clean taste of the mountain air. And also like rotting mulch and mushrooms, decomposing worms and grass that had been slowly dying underneath a large rock.

So far onions had done little to get rid of the taste and Charlie doubted it would ever go away.

But Rasmodius had told him he would be able to understand the language of the Junimos now without any... _side effects_. No more losing his memory for an hour and the ‘magic’ of the forest would now be more accessible to him.

“That sounded like so much bullshit, I probably got drugged.” Charlie dragged a hand down his face and continued walking. 

This wasn’t a path he had traveled before, only sticking to Marnie’s ranch and the merchant who set up her wagon twice a week. Occasionally he’d even see Leah, but this far down in the woods - there didn’t seem to be anything. 

Just as he thought that, he stumbled upon the house.

It was bigger than Charlie’s farmhouse, with a half open garage, and a chimney that steadily belched out smoke. The windows of the small house were open, letting in the breeze and letting the faint chords of music out. The house was seated almost next to the river and Charlie was grateful and a little envious that whoever lived here could hear the rushing river so close - in their backyard basically.

Then, Jax walked around the side of the house, holding a fishing pole and dragging a cooler behind him. 

Charlie almost hit himself in the face. How many times had people said the Rodriguez brothers lived in an old house down in Cindersnap Forest? 

Jax looked up and saw Charlie standing there, and grinned before walking over.

“Charlie? Hey man! Did you come for a visit? I didn’t even know you knew where we lived!” Jax said in a rush and Charlie grimaced.

“Uh, I didn’t Jax. I just kind of stumbled across it just now.” He said and looked around not meeting Jax’s eyes. “I just came from uh. From um...the tower further in the woods.”

Jax’s grin dropped. “The tower? Where that weird old man lives? The one who...thinks he’s a wizard?” 

“...Yeah.” 

“Charlie...Do I...Do I even _want_ to know?”

“...No.”

Jax started to laugh and clasped Charlie on the shoulder. “Charlie Daniels,” He said in between breaths. “Only you. I bet you didn’t even bother telling anybody you went to the creepy old tower today did you?”

Charlie rubbed at his neck. “I told Sadie? Does that count?” He said and grinned sheepishly. “That counts right?”

Jax rolled his eyes, letting go of Charlie and walking back toward his house. “No,” He snorted. “But do you have anything else to do today?”

Charlie checked his watch and looked towards the sun. It was going to get dark soon, and he wanted to get to the Community Center again to check the scroll, but it could always wait until tomorrow. 

Charlie took a step towards the house but stopped again. 

Miles. 

His stomach turned just thinking about him. He didn’t know what he was doing wrong, but everytime they saw each other or bumped into each other, Miles had avoided looking at him and as quickly as he could, made an excuse to _not_ be around him.

He didn’t have any evidence yet, but Charlie was sure Miles knew and didn’t want to be rude or _something_ when Charlie and Jax were good friends with each other. 

Barging into his house and being in his space uninvited didn’t seem the best thing for whatever tentative acquaintance ship they had going on.

Charlie shuffled a few paces back. “Ah, sorry Jax, there are a few things I have to wrap up for today - got a little distracted.” He laughed and tried not to fidget under the look Jax was giving him.

Never did well enough in school, but Charlie knew that Jax had his own strengths that couldn’t be easily measured in standardized tests and numerical scores.

Like how perceptive he was to other people’s feelings. To an unnerving degree.

Jax had seen right through him, he was sure, but shrugged it off anyway.

“Okay, I’ll tell Miles you stopped by.” He said and hefted the cooler across the threshold. “But don’t be a stranger Charlie, don’t be afraid to come down here - all I do is goof around most days anyway.”

Charlie nodded. “Yeah, same to you though, Jax. I can always use the company up on the farm. I’ll see you around.” Charlie waved goodbye to Jax and started to walk back the way he came, retracing his steps. 

It was probably easier to ask Jax the fastest way back to town, but their conversation had left Charlie unbalanced - and besides, the less likely he was to run into Miles, the better. Learning to avoid unpleasant people was a large part of Charlie’s life, beginning with his parents and ending with whomever else found out he was trans. Maru seemed okay with it and Harvey was nothing but courteous to him, but having doctors and nurses and a sorta friend, pseudo brother, was nothing like having an entire town knowing.

 _“Or an entire highschool knowing…”_ The bitterness that came with that one thought had Charlie gritting his teeth. “ _Fucking Lucille...God she probably wouldn’t even recognize me now. No one would.”_

Charlie shook those thoughts from his head. He had come to Stardew Valley for a new start - a _better_ start - and dwelling on the past, no matter how much it still hurt, wasn’t going to help him. He had better things to worry about now like getting the farm in working order, fixing the greenhouse and saving enough money so he could at least have his shower _inside_ the house. 

His teenage years and his early twenties and the pain and loneliness that came with it was over.

Charlie was going to make sure of that if it killed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!! this chapter was originally going to be longer but the end up there seemed like a good stopping point and the next portion seemed better for the next chapter anyways lol
> 
> (if yall see any grammer mistakes etc pls lmk)


	4. Meant For Passing Through

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Miles Rodriguez witnesses Pierre being a miser

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Miles POV! For someone whos my own ass character he was little bit harder to write, maybe thats why i struggled with this chapter orz - also the two chapters after this one will be short ones all from his POV before going back to Charlie's!

Year 1

Spring

Month 2

Miles was browsing the shelves in Pierre’s when the new guy walked through the doors.

Charlie Daniels.

The new farmer that had been slowly and steadily restoring the old farm - the one that everyone seemed to be captivated by. As he walked in, he stopped to chat with Leah and Marnie, joked with Gus and, for a second, with Abigail about some game they seemed to both play. Despite visibly faltering when they made eye contact, Charlie still nodded at Miles. Then he walked right up to the counter where Pierre stood and haggled prices with him. The shop was small enough that everyone could hear the conversation as it got more animated and Miles didn’t realize that Pierre could be such a  _ cheapskate _ . 

“Pierre do you think I was born yesterday? Don’t think I didn’t realize the profit margins on the crops that  _ I grew _ were slashed!” Miles could hear Charlie gripe. 

“Mr. Daniels, I understand what you’re getting at, but half of what you sell to me, isn’t sellable!” Pierre argued back and Miles shared a brief Look with Gus next to him. That was bullshit if Miles ever heard it.

Charlie snorted. “First of all, it’s  _ Charlie _ Pierre. Mr. Daniels was my grandfather, and second the  _ hell _ do you mean ‘isn’t sellable’? I give you all of  _ my _ best produce, I keep all of the dirt crusted, bruised, and ugly looking stuff for myself! I see people walking out of here  _ everyday _ with my crops you’ve sold!”

By now everyone in the store had stopped to listen to the ongoing negotiation. 

Charlie wasn’t lying - everything that Miles had bought from Pierre’s that was from Peach Springs farm was leagues better than anything from Joja Mart and from wherever Pierre had gotten his produce before the store had come into town. Each vegetable was fresh, cleaned to a healthy degree and large, growing in the nutrient rich soil of Charlie’s farm. His first batch of strawberries were the best things Jax had ever brought home and even the wild spring onions and horseradishes were of good quality.

“Look Charlie, you have to accept that some hard decisions are going to have to happen when you run a business and are business partners.” Pierre said and Charlie was quiet. Miles, behind the shelf couldn’t see, but Gus on the outside, closer could.

“Having a stare down…” Gus mumbled just loud enough for Miles to hear.

“Okay Pierre.” Charlie said, his tone so agreeable, Miles craned his neck to look over the display shelves. Pierre had a pleased smile on his face, but Charlie was idly inspecting the dirt underneath his nails. “If you feel that way, I guess I’ll just take all my produce back and sell it at Joja Mart.”

The smile dropped off of his face. “ _ What?!” _ Pierre yelled. “You wouldn’t! We have a deal!”

“I dunno Pierre,” Charlie sounded disaffected and uninterested now. “You’re kinda short selling me here, and I know Joja would give me a far larger cut even with all of my produce - not just the nice looking ones. It isn’t exactly  _ honest _ , but well, everyone has to make hard decisions when you have a business and are business partners.”

They were both silent again, but now Miles could tell that Charlie’s silence was that of smug superiority - Pierre’s of someone who wasn’t used to losing. 

“...Fine, I guess, cutting the profit margin was a little...rude of me.”

“I’m glad we’re in agreement about that. Now I want a fifteen percent increase for the next month to make up for it and a twelve percent increase afterwards.”

“You’re joking!” Pierre yelled again indignant. “I’ll do a 5 percent increase and 3 afterwards.”

“Twelve for eleven.”

“Seven for five.”

Charlie paused and Gus chuckled as he watched the interaction. 

“Hm. You drive a hard bargain Pierre, but that sounds like a deal.” Charlie laughed and Miles realized that Charlie had egged Pierre into that last deal on  _ purpose _ rather than letting himself be driven to something lower and less desirable. 

From the frown Pierre sported as Miles looked over the shelves, he knew it too.

Charlie hadn’t even bought anything and left the store, a self satisfied smile on his face as Abigail’s laughter followed him out the store. Charlie caught Gus’s eye as he went sending him a mischievous smirk and waved goodbye to the rest of them.

Miles stared after Charlie. 

There had been something bothering him since he had seen him on the farm that day. Charlie looked oddly familiar to him. Miles wasn’t sure if it was during his time in the city or...sometime  _ before _ , but he knew Charlie from somewhere. 

Jax at least  _ definitely _ did.

His brother and the farmer had struck up an almost unnatural friendship - by his third week in town, Charlie was greeting Jax and joking with him like they were old friends. They had known each other,  _ somehow _ , but when he tried questioning him Jax said he couldn’t tell him.

“It’s not like I don’t  _ want _ to tell you Miles,” He had said. “It’s just that I think that probably Charlie would want to tell you himself maybe?” 

And that had been that. 

It had left Miles with more questions than he knew to do with. Being around Charlie unsettled him. At times he reminded Miles of people he had tried his best to forget. 

That was mostly the point of moving to Stardew Valley after all.

\---

Miles was fishing when someone came walking down the pier towards him. Halfway there, the steps faltered, and Miles knew who it was before he heard his voice.

“Miles. Uh, hi.” Charlie as he stood next to him. “Do you, uh, is it okay if I fish next to you?”

Miles swallowed thickly, but nodded. He actually didn’t want Charlie next to him, but he was more worried about how’d he react if he said no. 

Miles hated feeling that way - guessing when someone was going to be upset and furious with him for the slightest thing. He had spent years feeling that way and then-

Then he and Jax had moved to Pelican Town and Mies started to unlearn years of passive aggressive induced guilt. Everything may have not been perfect, but people like Shane or Clint he’d learn to avoid. The same reasons he avoided those two, were why he preferred to talk with Pam and even Demetrius. 

Straightforward and always said what was on their minds. Miles always knew if he’d made them upset. 

Strangers on the other hand. Strangers like  _ Charlie _ left him...uneasy.

Still Miles let Charlie sit and fish next to him. 

Instead of a cooler, Charlie had brought a bucket along with the large messenger bag he carried everywhere with him. And for the next two hours, they reeled up fish in silence apart from the annoyed sighs Charlie exhaled whenever a fish seemed to get away from him.

Only when it began to grow late did Charlie haul himself to his feet, groaning as he did. 

Charlie grunted in pain.“Ah, shit, I can’t keep sitting hunched over like that for hours anymore.” He mumbled to himself. 

He didn’t say anything to Miles, just carried his bucket into Willy’s shop, without so much as a backwards glance. 

Miles was alone, but now he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be. The silence between them hadn’t been uncomfortable or friendly, but it was  _ there. _ Now, being by himself, Miles thought it was deafening and reeking of isolation.

He was packing up himself when Charlie walked back outside of the shop, rolling a stray stone in his hands. He looked deep in thought and from where Miles kneeled on the dock, sneaking glances, he could see the furrow between his brows, the tension in his shoulders.

“Hey can I ask a question?” 

Charlie jumped and Miles was startled himself. The words just seemed to come out of their own accord. But now they existed and Charlie was looking at him eyes wide and his hand clenched around the small rock.

“Sure.” Was what he said. Charlie’s  _ tone _ made him think otherwise. 

Miles busied himself with pretending to decide which fish he would take home and which ones he planned on selling to Willy or give to Gus. He and Jax could always use the money. 

“Uh, have we - I mean, you look familiar? Jax and you are really good friends - just, have we met before?” He said, careful not to look into Charlie’s face.

Miles heard Charlie breathe out a sigh, followed by a relieved sounding laugh.

“Oh god is that it?” He said to himself and louder, “Uh, y-yeah. We have actually. Um, we - I mean you and I - uh, we-we went to the same highschool.”

Miles stilled. The same highschool meant that...Charlie probably  _ knew _ . That explained the hesitation and the familiarity at least. He had figured it was through them sharing a bus stop for a couple of weeks or anything else less consequential than being  _ classmates.  _ They could have passed each other in the halls dozens of times and yet Miles never thought to look twice at Charlie. 

“We went to the same highschool?” Miles said and stood up, facing the ocean, looking out towards the horizon. It was a clear day and in the distance, the Ginger Islands could be seen.

Charlie nodded. “You were in the grade above me, and I tutored Jax.”

That answered some questions. But not all of them.

“I...I guess you’ve always been kind of familiar, but I think I would have remembered my little brother’s tutor.” Miles tried again, but Charlie shook his head, 

He continued to gaze into the depths of the ocean. “I was kind of a nobody, Miles - really - so I’m not surprised you don’t remember me.”

Miles frowned. Charlie didn’t seem like the person to be a nobody - maybe a little awkward, but he was kind and charismatic. The other residents of Pelican Town had warmed up to Charlie far faster than they had to Miles at least. His arrival in Pierre’s shop that morning was all the indication Miles needed to know that Charlie being a nobody didn’t seem right.

“I’m...I’m sorry.” Miles said. He wasn’t sure what he was apologizing for. Not knowing Charlie? Not realizing he knew him earlier? The fact that he had to know Miles at all? “I’m sure if we knew each other we’d have been friends.”

Charlie stared at the water a few more seconds before turning to look up at Miles. His face was blank, but the sun caught his eyes, casting them in bronze with flecks of darker brown in them, framed by delicate long eyelashes. His freckles stood out in the midday sun and Miles realized how close they were. Close enough that Miles could smell the brine of the ocean and damp soil that he was realizing lingered on him.

Charlie’s eyebrow twitched and he looked away. Miles’ stomach dropped. Not knowing what Charlie - or anyone else - thought of him, was the most distressing thing about interacting with people anymore. He never knew if he was doing something wrong and every shift in tone and sidelong glance, no matter how innocent it seemed, kept Miles up at night.

“I don’t think so.” Charlie finally said. “I would have liked us to be friends, but...Well I guess I’m glad we have the opportunity to be friends now.”

Miles blinked. The sudden drop in his mood only started to soar upwards again. 

Charlie looked back at Miles and smiled. “Come by the farm sometime? I could always use the company.” Charlie tossed the stone in his hands into the ocean, they watched as it skipped three times before sinking beneath the waves. He patted Miles on the back and his fingers - to Miles - seemed to stay a few seconds longer than they should have.

Miles swallowed. “I’ll see you around.” He said.

Charlie nodded at him. “See you around,” And he turned and walked back up the dock, off the beach.

Miles hadn’t realized he’d been staring after him again until Charlie was gone from his sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! comments and kudos r welcome!


	5. An Old Cliche

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update! Mostly bc the last chapter and this one were supposed to be together but then I changed some stuff and now theyre better apart orz 
> 
> Dont forget to read chapter four first!
> 
> only one more short chap after this one btw

“Miles? What are you doing up this early?” Jax’s tone wasn’t accusatory - concerned, but nothing else. 

Miles looked at his brother, knowing full well what he’d see. Dark bags under bloodshot eyes. Messy hair and a perpetual squint that came with long nights spent staring into space.

“Oh.”

“I’m fine.” Miles hadn’t gone to bed that night, laying awake for only a few hours, until he gave up and decided to leave the house and fish the entire night. Again. For the third time this week. “Just...Just tired.”

“Miles-” Jax tried but Miles cut him off. 

“You’re about to head out right? Can you deliver a letter for me?” He said and shoved the letter into his hands. “It's for Charlie.”

Jax took the letter, his eyebrows raised in surprise. “Huh? I mean yeah, of course. Mayor Lewis doesn’t pay me for nothing. Charlie though? I thought you...Don’t you think he doesn’t like you?”

Miles shrugged, tired. He could almost feel the bags under his eyes. He didn’t exactly want to explain to Jax, but the faster he did, the faster Jax would leave. Then Miles would be able to pass out wherever in peace. “We talked on the pier the other day.” He yawned. “He invited me up on the farm, and...”

Jax’s eyes widened. “Oh. That’s where you’ve been the last few days?”

Miles nodded. 

After their talk on the pier, Charlie had chatted and talked with Miles like he did with any other person in Pelican Town, no longer hesitating when he saw Miles in town. It almost gave him whiplash considering Charlie had spent the last few weeks avoiding Miles, and when that failed, talking to him as little as possible. 

He had taken Charlie’s invitation to heart and the next day -after hours of second guessing himself - made his way up to Peach Springs Farm, a basket of warm food in his hands. His dog had taken far more of a liking to him when he had food and Miles watched as Charlie spoiled his dog rotten with table food.

Then they’d taken a walk around Peach Springs and Charlie had shown him how the farm was coming along. He had neat rows of half grown cauliflowers and potatoes and another batch of parsnips, green beans, and strawberries on the way to being sold at Pierre’s again. He’d taken to building fences too and while Miles had been impressed, Charlie just commented on how every other post was crooked.

Miles favorite thing about his farm though, was the Peach Tree Grove.

Seymour Daniels’ pride and joy back when he was alive was his peach orchard and even after years of neglect, each tree stood tall and healthy, each one on the verges of blooming delicate pink flowers. Charlie only had to prune a few dead and diseased limbs and unfortunately a tree or two that had sprouted up in the decades of abandonment. 

Charlie had started to talk about all of his plans for the summer and what he planned for the rest of spring, the breeze blowing off a few petals that fell around him - on his hair and on his shoulders - not that Charlie noticed, too excited by the prospect of future projects.

Miles hadn’t been paying though. 

Over the next few days Miles had gone back to Peach Springs and every time, Charlie had greeted him with a smile, a new story to tell, or about how the crops were doing. Oftentimes, Miles helped Charlie on the farm. 

Somehow he had gotten home before Jax each day and his little brother never questioned what he did all day. That wasn’t too uncommon, but Miles  _ also _ knew Charlie and Jax talked often and was more surprised the farmer hadn’t told his brother about their days spent together before.

It seemed after that day on the pier, Charlie hadn’t lied, and actually wanted to be friends with Miles. It was baffling, but like his brother and Penny and Elliot, Charlie wanted to be friends with him.

Being friends with people didn’t mean their issues magically went away though.

Miles hadn’t had a decent night of sleep in the last three days and hadn’t left his house in almost four. Whenever he slept, it was in snatches of ten minute naps here and there, and the lack of sleep never did anything for the anxiety that always seemed to buzz underneath his skin without him noticing.

Not a lot of people wanted to be around that, so Miles had written the letter for Charlie.

Jax took the letter, putting in his postal bag and left, Miles telling him to stay safe in the dark of the early morning. 

Then, it was Miles in their house, by himself, exhausted beyond belief but still too wired to go to bed. It was barely 5 in the morning and he’d been up the entire night. The melatonin had stopped working years ago and Miles never told Harvey about his sleeping problems.

“ _ I should start breakfast for Jax,”  _ Miles thought instead of going to his room, and lay his head against the back of their sagging couch. He let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes. The sun wasn’t up yet and the morning air still held a chill to it even this far into spring. “ _ I’ll do it in a little bit. When the sun comes up.” _

\---

Miles was shaken awake. He flinched before he realized that the hand on his shoulder was rough and warm, not lithe and small, with manicured fingernails digging into his shoulder. 

He didn’t open his eyes. Not yet. Instead he took several deep breaths, getting his heart back down from the rabbit thud it was currently doing behind his ribcage. On his last breath, he exhaled and opened his eyes. The ceiling wasn’t the one back in their apartment. Instead of the sounds of early morning traffic and the D train rattling down the tracks behind their building, it was the river that he could  _ just _ make out as always. The sun was up and shining - and from the look of it - had been for several hours now. Miles knew he was in their house in Pelican Town and not in Zuzu City. And now that he was awake he could feel the aching crick in his neck from sleeping with his head tipped back and the dull spike of pain from his lower back when he shifted slightly. 

Miles had fallen asleep, but he felt far from rested. 

Jax watched him, his eyes narrowed and out of reach, but didn’t comment on how he had fallen asleep. 

“You’re clenching your hand, dude.” He said instead and Miles realized how tense he was.

“Sorry, sorry,” He said and scrubbed a hand over his face, trying to get rid of how drained he felt. “What’s up?”

Jax just raised an eyebrow. “Go to your room man, I want to sit on the couch.”

Miles rolled his eyes. “Really? That’s it? You can’t just sit in your room?

“What? You can sit in  _ your _ room? Aren’t you like, old or something anyway, and need to sleep in an actual bed?”

“ _ Old? _ I’m not old, I'm barely 25!” Miles argued back, ignoring the twinging pain in his back. “And I can sleep on the couch if I want - its a couch.”

Still, Miles stood so Jax could sit down, stretching his back and neck with gentle movements. Jax was already dressed down for the day, his reflective vest and postal bag hung up by the door and his old boots in the mudroom. 

“So? Any good mail deliveries?” Miles asked and watched as Jax smirked.

“Lewis paid me extra this morning to deliver a ‘discreet’ letter to Marnie.”

“Again?” 

“Again,” Jax laughed. “They aren’t really too subtle about it, but whatever I guess. Uh, nothing much else honestly. Caroline had a letter for that dude in the weird tower, but a lot of them were actually for Charlie - I think just people sharing recipes, but you’re the only one to give him an actual letter.”

“Oh. Well...Sure.”

Jax gave him another long look. This one, he couldn’t decipher, but whatever it was, Jax had found out something before Miles had. 

Which was usually the case. 

“I'm going to start breakfast,” Miles said, and walked into the kitchen, avoiding the eyes staring into the back of his head. Miles could hear Jax get up to follow, but didn’t comment, just dragging himself off the couch to help. Silently they made breakfast, the motions of it ingrained into them after so many years.

Jax made the coffee, while Miles made the eggs and bacon. The fruit would be cut up by Jax, but Miles had been the one to clean it while they both made their own toast. It didn’t matter how long Miles had slept (or if he’d slept at all) or when Jax finished deliveries for the day, but they’d always make breakfast together as brothers.

They’d been doing so for the last six years after all. Even when they’d had nothing but eggs and an apple to split between the two of them, they’d at least had each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading! comments n kudos r welcome!  
> Also if yall got some critiques or see spelling/grammar errors dont be afraid to tell me!


	6. Known By Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Egg Hunt and a conversation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yall this chapter gave me so much trouble - writing and editing it was a nightmare and i still might change stuff with this and the entire story. But a chapter's a chapter and it was written whether I like it or not orz
> 
> (And if anyone wants to be my beta....that'd be cool jsyk)

“No?”

“Absolutely not.”

Miles and Charlie stood off to the side, watching as everyone talked amongst themselves with plates piled high with egg dishes. 

Miles laughed and looked at Charlie with raised eyebrows. “Why not? Everyone loves the Egg Hunt.”

Charlie just gave him a deadpan stare. “The egg hunt is for babies Miles. Like actual children.” 

“Jax is going to do it,”

They both looked over at Jax, who was crouched down to talk with Vincent and Jas. From across the square they couldn’t make out what he was saying, but it was clear he had both children captivated by whatever story he was telling.

“Miles,” Charlie sighed. “Jax  _ is _ a child.”

Miles just laughed again and grabbed the cuff of his jacket. As the first festival of the season, Jax had insisted Charlie come to the Egg Hunt. And when Charlie had asked Miles if he was going he hadn’t the will to say no. Had _ lied _ and told Charlie he always looked forward to it. 

And maybe when they first moved to the Valley that was true. Then, Miles took every chance to get out and distract himself from the aches and pains of that empty house and the left behind apartment in the city. That year, at the Stardew Valley Fair, however, put an end to any festivals Miles could stomach. 

What he hadn’t told Charlie was this was the first time he had attended the Egg Hunt since moving to Pelican Town in two years. 

And it showed. Charlie strolling into the town square was met with grins - smiles and waves. The townspeople, seeing Miles, had greeted him with raised eyebrows, looks of surprise and confusion before they went back to their own conversations. 

He had burned with embarrassment, it scorching beneath his skin, while unease churned in his veins. 

Not that Miles had told Charlie any of that. Instead he hung back in the shade of the Saloon as Charlie excused himself to talk with the rest of the town, going from group to group, laughing, joking, and smiling and nodding politely when the need arose.

He was dressed in what Miles assumed was his best shirt - a crisp emerald green button down and black slacks, and his hair was brushed, all of the flyaway strands and cowlicks wrestled into submission. His rolled sleeves showed the absolute multitude of freckles that covered him and, Miles noted with an uncomfortable pit of envy, the toned and sculpted muscles that were usually hidden by a layer or two of clothing.

He hadn’t realized he was staring until Charlie was with Abigail, Sam, and Sebastian. 

He was talking with them just like with everyone else, when Charlie had said... _ something _ and as one all four of them had looked over at him. From behind the three of them, Charlie waved. Sam and Sebastian had looked unimpressed and Abigail was pouting. 

Miles had clutched at his cuff again, but regardless waved. Charlie smiled, Abigail, Sam, and Sebastian giving half waves back.

This was one of the reasons he had never attended these.

“Doing okay?”

Miles looked up at Jax. His brother was holding a stuffed rabbit and was wearing ears as well and looked even more ridiculous than ever.

“Fine. Aren’t they about to start?”

Jax shook his head. “Nah, they’re waiting for me since Charlie isn’t joining in today.”

“What about me?” 

Jax turned to Charlie with a smile. “Oh we were just talking about how lame you are for not joining in on the egg hunt.”

Charlie scowled at Jax and rolled his eyes. “Yeah sure,” He said and Miles paused.

Charlie he was beginning to realize was a pretty laid back person most days. A hard worker, but easy to get along with and ready to take things into his own hands if the need arose. 

Even as he joked and smiled along with whatever annoying shit Jax was liable to say at any given time, Miles noticed how his smiles weren’t as forthcoming and the stiffness of his shoulders and hands as he rubbed them down his slacks repeatedly.

Miles took a step forward, ready to bat his little brother away and talk to Charlie away from the rest of the town.

Lewis's voice called out to Jax though, signalling the start of the Egg Hunt and the words on Miles’ tongue dried up.

By the end of it, Jax had won the Egg Hunt, scooping up 23 eggs in just two minutes, and winning the grand prize of a straw hat that he’d immediately gifted Charlie. 

(For everyone’s favorite farmer!”

“I’m the  _ only _ farmer any of you know…”)

* * *

Jax had headed back to their house, jogging through the forested path and yelling over his shoulder that next year, he’d get Charlie to join in no matter what.

Charlie didn’t laugh or roll his eyes. He scoffed to Miles’ surprise, the harsh noise unmistakable amongst the distant sounds of bird call and crickets. Miles was ready to ask him what was wrong, if Charlie was really  _ that _ put off to be surly and annoyed by the prospect of it. As close as they were, walking side by side still, he could hear everything that Charlie was grumbling about.

“It won’t matter,” Charlie muttered under his breath. “I won’t be here next year anyway.”

Miles frowned. What? He was...Charlie had just gotten here.

“You...You’re leaving?” He asked, too quiet almost, but it was enough. Miles watched as Charlie flinched, looking up at Miles with hunched shoulders and frown pulling at his lips, that after a few seconds set, his eyebrows coming together but his shoulders squaring as he straightened, looking Miles in the eye.

“...Yeah. Um, maybe in about a year. I’m saving up to move into one the...smaller  _ nicer _ neighborhoods outside of the city.” Charlie didn’t blink. His eyebrow twitched and he rubbed his hands on his slacks, but still looked at Miles.

Miles took the time to unclench his jaw and let his gaze slide off of Charlie towards the trees.. “Oh.” He couldn’t say anything else - everything there  _ was  _ to say sounded even more desperate and clingy than the last and-

They were just friends. Barely. Acquaintances that had a head start because of high school  _ if _ that. 

If Charlie really wanted to leave, Miles wouldn’t ask him to stay.

He wouldn’t do that to him. He had no right to.

They walked in uncomfortable and unnerving silence until they got to Marnie’s ranch. No longer easy and amicable and Miles knew it had everything to do with how blindsided he felt about how, in a year, the man next to him would be another memory to add onto the pyre. 

He’d done it again. Foolishly,  _ recklessly _ , Miles had gotten too attached, too fast, again.

When they stopped, Charlie rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry Miles.” He said and Miles was smart enough to not ask why. It wasn’t necessary. “I should have said something sooner.”

“No, Charlie, you didn’t have to say anything if you didn’t want to.” Mile tried but Charlie shook his head.

“It still hurt you.”

Miles opened his mouth ready to refute him, but shut it again with a clack of his teeth. It  _ had _ . He had been caught off guard and surprised and  _ hurt _ by the fact Charlie hadn’t told him sooner. But he was still - Charlie didn’t  _ have _ to tell him - or anyone for that matter - if he didn’t want to. 

“Charlie-”

“No Miles, it’s - I know what you’re going to say. And I know, I know.” Charlie sighed. “Honestly though, I think...If I’m here next year, I’ll skip out. I don’t...I think I prefer my farm and my dog to this.”

Charlie took off the straw hat, but didn’t give it to Miles. He ran a hand through his hair, disrupting what little remained of the order it was in and sighed. 

“Feel free to stop by if you want to skip out too.” Charlie said and stuffed the hat into his bag. “See you around Miles.”

And with that he left, Miles himself heading towards the forest, not knowing why he felt disappointment - poignant and unyielding now.

He had always known Charlie wouldn’t stick around, living in the valley or not. At some point in time he’d get tired of Miles - tired of entertaining him - and find better people to hang out with. This wasn’t anything new, but still Miles just wasn’t sure when he had gotten his hopes up.

He knew at least  _ now _ not to get them up again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank u for reading!! kudos and comments give me life ngl
> 
> Charlie's chapters are next!! Honestly? Dont expect another Miles one soon!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!! Smash that kudos button if you liked!! Gently click if you didn't!


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